A semi‐local spectral/hp element solver for linear elasticity problems

We develop an efficient semi‐local method for speeding up the solution of linear systems arising in spectral/hp element discretization of the linear elasticity equations. The main idea is to approximate the element‐wise residual distribution with a localization operator we introduce in this paper, and subsequently solve the local linear system. Additionally, we decouple the three directions of displacement in the localization operator, hence enabling the use of an efficient low energy preconditioner for the conjugate gradient solver. This approach is effective for both nodal and modal bases in the spectral/hp element method, but here, we focus on the modal hierarchical basis. In numerical tests, we verify that there is no loss of accuracy in the semi‐local method, and we obtain good parallel scalability and substantial speed‐up compared to the original formulation. In particular, our tests include both structure‐only and fluid‐structure interaction problems, with the latter modeling a 3D patient‐specific brain aneurysm. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the evaluation of the method of finite spheres for the solution of Reissner–Mindlin plate problems using the numerical inf–sup test

In this paper we use the numerical inf–sup test to evaluate both displacement‐based and mixed discretization schemes for the solution of Reissner–Mindlin plate problems using the meshfree method of finite spheres. While an analytical proof of whether a discretization scheme passes the inf–sup condition is most desirable, such a proof is usually out of reach due to the complexity of the meshfree approximation spaces involved. The numerical inf–sup test (Int. J. Numer. Meth. Engng 1997; 40 :3639–3663), developed to test finite element discretization spaces, has therefore been adopted in this paper. Tests have been performed for both regular and irregular nodal configurations. While, like linear finite elements, pure displacement‐based approximation spaces with linear consistency do not pass the inf–sup test and exhibit shear locking, quadratic discretizations, unlike quadratic finite elements, pass the test. Pure displacement‐based and mixed approximation spaces that pass the numerical inf–sup test exhibit optimal or near optimal convergence behaviour. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel quadratic Bézier triangular and tetrahedral elements using existing mesh generators: Applications to linear nearly incompressible elastostatics and implicit and explicit elastodynamics

In this paper, we present novel techniques of using quadratic Bézier triangular and tetrahedral elements for elastostatic and implicit/explicit elastodynamic simulations involving nearly incompressible linear elastic materials. A simple linear mapping is proposed for developing finite element meshes with quadratic Bézier triangular/tetrahedral elements from the corresponding quadratic Lagrange elements that can be easily generated using the existing mesh generators. Numerical issues arising in the case of nearly incompressible materials are addressed using the consistent B -bar formulation, thus reducing the finite element formulation to one consisting only of displacements. The higher-order spatial discretization and the nonnegative nature of Bernstein polynomials are shown to yield significant computational benefits. The optimal spatial convergence of the B -bar formulation for the quadratic triangular and tetrahedral elements is demonstrated by computing error norms in displacement and stresses. The applicability and computational efficiency of the proposed elements for elastodynamic simulations are demonstrated by studying several numerical examples involving real-world geometries with complex features. Numerical results obtained with the standard linear triangular and tetrahedral elements are also presented for comparison.     

Finite elements for elasticity with microstructure and gradient elasticity

We present a general finite element discretization of Mindlin's elasticity with microstructure. A total of 12 isoparametric elements are developed and presented, six for plane strain conditions and six for the general case of three‐dimensional deformation. All elements interpolate both the displacement and microdeformation fields. The minimum order of integration is determined for each element, and they are all shown to pass the single‐element test and the patch test. Numerical results for the benchmark problem of one‐dimensional deformation show good convergence to the closed‐form solution. The behaviour of all elements is also examined at the limiting case of vanishing relative deformation, where elasticity with microstructure degenerates to gradient elasticity. An appropriate parameter selection that enforces this degeneration in an approximate manner is presented, and numerical results are shown to provide good approximation to the respective displacements and strains of a gradient elastic solid. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Model reduction for dynamical systems with quadratic output

Finite element models for structures and vibrations often lead to second order dynamical systems with large sparse matrices. For large‐scale finite element models, the computation of the frequency response function and the structural response to dynamic loads may present a considerable computational cost. Padé via Krylov methods are widely used and are appreciated projection‐based model reduction techniques for linear dynamical systems with linear output. This paper extends the framework of the Krylov methods to systems with a quadratic output arising in linear quadratic optimal control or random vibration problems. Three different two‐sided model reduction approaches are formulated based on the Krylov methods. For all methods, the control (or right) Krylov space is the same. The difference between the approaches lies, thus, in the choice of the observation (or left) Krylov space. The algorithms and theory are developed for the particularly important case of structural damping. We also give numerical examples for large‐scale systems corresponding to the forced vibration of a simply supported plate and of an existing footbridge. In this case, a block form of the Padé via Krylov method is used. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Polygonal finite elements for finite elasticity

Nonlinear elastic materials are of great engineering interest, but challenging to model with standard finite elements. The challenges arise because nonlinear elastic materials are characterized by non‐convex stored‐energy functions as a result of their ability to undergo large reversible deformations, are incompressible or nearly incompressible, and often times possess complex microstructures. In this work, we propose and explore an alternative approach to model finite elasticity problems in two dimensions by using polygonal discretizations. We present both lower order displacement‐based and mixed polygonal finite element approximations, the latter of which consist of a piecewise constant pressure field and a linearly‐complete displacement field at the element level. Through numerical studies, the mixed polygonal finite elements are shown to be stable and convergent. For demonstration purposes, we deploy the proposed polygonal discretization to study the nonlinear elastic response of rubber filled with random and periodic distributions of rigid particles, as well as the development of cavitation instabilities in elastomers containing vacuous defects. These physically‐based examples illustrate the potential of polygonal finite elements in studying and modeling nonlinear elastic materials with complex microstructures under finite deformations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A novel unsymmetric 8‐node plane element immune to mesh distortion under a quadratic displacement field

An 8‐node quadrilateral plane finite element is developed based on a novel unsymmetric formulation which is characterized by the use of two sets of shape functions, viz., the compatibility enforcing shape functions and completeness enforcing shape functions. The former are chosen to satisfy exactly the minimum inter‐ as well as intra‐element displacement continuity requirements, while the latter are chosen to satisfy all the (linear and higher order) completeness requirements so as to reproduce exactly a quadratic displacement field. Numerical results from test problems reveal that the new element is indeed capable of reproducing exactly a complete quadratic displacement field under all types of admissible mesh distortions. In this respect, the proposed 8‐node unsymmetric element emerges to be better than the existing symmetric QUAD8, QUAD8/9, QUAD9, QUAD12 and QUAD16 elements, and matches the performance of the quartic element, QUAD25. For test problems involving a cubic or higher order displacement field, the proposed element yields a solution accuracy that is comparable to or better than that of QUAD8, QUAD8/9 and QUAD9 elements. Furthermore, the element maintains a good accuracy even with the reduced 2× 2 numerical integration. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On computing upper and lower bounds on the outputs of linear elasticity problems approximated by the smoothed finite element method

Verification of the computation of local quantities of interest, e.g. the displacements at a point, the stresses in a local area and the stress intensity factors at crack tips, plays an important role in improving the structural design for safety. In this paper, the smoothed finite element method (SFEM) is used for finding upper and lower bounds on the local quantities of interest that are outputs of the displacement field for linear elasticity problems, based on bounds on strain energy in both the primal and dual problems. One important feature of SFEM is that it bounds the strain energy of the structure from above without needing the solutions of different subproblems that are based on elements or patches but only requires the direct finite element computation. Upper and lower bounds on two linear outputs and one quadratic output related with elasticity—the local reaction, the local displacement and the J‐integral—are computed by the proposed method in two different examples. Some issues with SFEM that remain to be resolved are also discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A spline strip kernel particle method and its application to two‐dimensional elasticity problems

In this paper we present a novel spline strip kernel particle method (SSKPM) that has been developed for solving a class of two‐dimensional (2D) elasticity problems. This new approach combines the concepts of the mesh‐free methods and the spline strip method. For the interpolation of the assumed displacement field, we employed the kernel particle shape functions in the transverse direction, and the B₃‐spline function in the longitudinal direction. The formulation is validated on several beam and semi‐infinite plate problems. The numerical results of these test problems are then compared with the existing solutions obtained by the exact or numerical methods. From this study we conclude that the SSKPM is a potential alternative to the classical finite strip method (FSM). Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Patch‐averaged assumed strain finite elements for stress analysis

A finite element model for linear‐elastic small deformation problems is presented. The formulation is based on a weighted residual that requires a priori the satisfaction of the kinematic equation. In this approach, an averaged strain‐displacement matrix is constructed for each node of the mesh by defining an appropriate patch of elements, yielding a smooth representation of strain and stress fields. Connections with traditional and similar procedure are explored. Linear quadrilateral four‐node and linear hexahedral eight‐node elements are derived. Various numerical tests show the accuracy and convergence properties of the proposed elements in comparison with extant finite elements and analytic solutions. Specific examples are also included to illustrate the ability to resist numerical locking in the incompressible limit and insensitive response in the presence of shape distortion. Furthermore, the numerical inf‐sup test is applied to a selection of problems to show the stability of the present formulation. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The development of hybrid axisymmetric elements based on the Hellinger–Reissner variational principle

We present a general procedure for the development of hybrid axisymmetric elements based on the Hellinger–Reissner principle within the context of linear elasticity. Similar to planar elements, the stress interpolation is obtained by an identification of the zero‐energy modes. We illustrate our procedure by designing a lower‐order (four‐node) and a higher‐order (nine‐node) element. Both elements are of correct rank, and moreover use the minimum number of stress parameters, namely seven and 17. Several examples are presented to show the excellent performance of both elements under various demanding situations such as when the material is almost incompressible, when the thickness to radius ratio is very small, etc. When the variation of the field variables is along the radial direction alone, when the mesh is uniform, and the loading is of pressure type, the developed elements are superconvergent, i.e. they yield the exact nodal displacement values. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Locking in the incompressible limit for the element‐free Galerkin method

Volumetric locking (locking in the incompressible limit) for linear elastic isotropic materials is studied in the context of the element‐free Galerkin method. The modal analysis developed here shows that the number of non‐physical locking modes is independent of the dilation parameter (support of the interpolation functions). Thus increasing the dilation parameter does not suppress locking. Nevertheless, an increase in the dilation parameter does reduce the energy associated with the non‐physical locking modes; thus, in part, it alleviates the locking phenomena. This is shown for linear and quadratic orders of consistency. Moreover, the biquadratic order of consistency, as in finite elements, improves the locking behaviour. Although more locking modes are present in the element‐free Galerkin method with quadratic consistency than with standard biquadratic finite elements. Finally, numerical examples are shown to validate the modal analysis. In particular, the conclusions of the modal analysis are also confirmed in an elastoplastic example. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Discontinuous Galerkin methods with plane waves for the displacement‐based acoustic equation

Several special finite element methods have been proposed to solve Helmholtz problems in the mid‐frequency regime, such as the Partition of Unity Method, the Ultra Weak Variational Formulation and the Discontinuous Enrichment Method. The first main purpose of this paper is to present a discontinuous Galerkin method with plane waves (which is a variant of the Discontinuous Enrichment Method) to solve the displacement‐based acoustic equation. The use of the displacement variable is often necessary in the context of fluid–structure interactions. A well‐known issue with this model is the presence of spurious vortical modes when one uses standard finite elements such as Lagrange elements. This problem, also known as the locking phenomenon, is observed with several other vector based equations such as incompressible elasticity and electromagnetism. So this paper also aims at assessing if the special finite element methods suffer from the locking phenomenon in the context of the displacement acoustic equation. The discontinuous Galerkin method presented in this paper is shown to be very accurate and stable, i.e. no spurious modes are observed. The optimal choice of the various parameters are discussed with regards to numerical accuracy and conditioning. Some interesting properties of the mixed displacement–pressure formulation are also presented. Furthermore, the use of the Partition of Unity Method is also presented, but it is found that spurious vortical modes may appear with this method. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Efficient numerical methods for the large‐scale,parallel solution of elastoplastic contact problems

Quasi‐static elastoplastic contact problems are ubiquitous in many industrial processes and other contexts, and their numerical simulation is consequently of great interest in accurately describing and optimizing production processes. The key component in these simulations is the solution of a single load step of a time iteration. From a mathematical perspective, the problems to be solved in each time step are characterized by the difficulties of variational inequalities for both the plastic behavior and the contact problem. Computationally, they also often lead to very large problems. In this paper, we present and evaluate a complete set of methods that are (1) designed to work well together and (2) allow for the efficient solution of such problems. In particular, we use adaptive finite element meshes with linear and quadratic elements, a Newton linearization of the plasticity, active set methods for the contact problem, and multigrid‐preconditioned linear solvers. Through a sequence of numerical experiments, we show the performance of these methods. This includes highly accurate solutions of a three‐dimensional benchmark problem and scaling our methods in parallel to 1024 cores and more than a billion unknowns. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A benchmark study of reduced‐strain shell finite elements: quadratic schemes

We study experimentally the accuracy and reliability of some low‐order shell finite element schemes based on modifying the standard displacement formulation by reduced‐strain expressions. We focus on quadrilateral elements with a quadratic displacement approximation. Three benchmark problems with different asymptotic behaviour in the limit of zero shell thickness is used in the experiments. Following the error analysis of a reduced‐strain scheme, we study two components of the total error, the approximation error and the consistency error. We demonstrate that the performance of the methods is both case and mesh dependent. When a bending dominated problem is solved, none of the methods studied can avoid the usual worst‐case locking effect of the approximation error on general meshes. For a membrane dominated problem the total error is typically dominated by the consistency error which often convergences slowly. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stability analysis of the forward Euler scheme for the convection-diffusion equation using the SUPG formulation in space

The stability and accuracy of the forward Euler scheme for the semidiscrete problem arising from the space discretization of the convection-diffusion equation using the SUPG formulation are analysed. Both linear and quadratic finite elements are considered. The stability limits are derived for the one-dimensional problem and a heuristic criterion is proposed for the multidimensional equation. Some numerical experiments are conducted in order to assess the performance of different finite elements.     

Twenty-four–DOF four-node quadrilateral elements for gradient elasticity

Computational analysis of gradient elasticity often requires the trial solution to be C¹, yet constructing simple C¹ finite elements is not trivial. In this paper, three four-node 24-DOF quadrilateral elements for gradient elasticity analysis are devised by generalizing some of the advanced element formulations for thin-plate analysis. These include the discrete Kirchhoff method, a relaxed hybrid-stress method, and the hybrid-stress method with equilibrating internal force modes. The first two methods start with the derivation of a C⁰ displacement, which is quadratic complete in the Cartesian coordinates. In the first method, at the midside points are derived and interpolated together with those at the nodes. Strain is derived from the displacement interpolation yet the second-order displacement derivatives are derived from the displacement-gradient interpolation. In the second method, only the assumed constant double-stress modes are employed to enforce the continuity of the normal derivative of the displacement. In the third method, the equilibrating internal force modes require the C¹ displacement to be defined only along the element boundary and the domain interpolation can be avoided. Patch test involving linear stress and constant double stress as well as other tests are presented to validate the proposed elements.     

Polyhedral elements by means of node/edge‐based smoothed finite element method

The node‐based or edge‐based smoothed finite element method is extended to develop polyhedral elements that are allowed to have an arbitrary number of nodes or faces, and so retain a good geometric adaptability. The strain smoothing technique and implicit shape functions based on the linear point interpolation make the element formulation simple and straightforward. The resulting polyhedral elements are free from the excessive zero‐energy modes and yield a robust solution very much insensitive to mesh distortion. Several numerical examples within the framework of linear elasticity demonstrate the accuracy and convergence behavior. The smoothed finite element method‐based polyhedral elements in general yield solutions of better accuracy and faster convergence rate than those of the conventional finite element methods. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

3D modelling of strong discontinuities in elastoplastic solids: fixed and rotating localization formulations

This paper is concerned with the incorporation of displacement discontinuities into a continuum theory of elastoplasticity for the modelling of localization processes such as cracking in brittle materials. Based on the strong discontinuity approach (SDA) (Computational Mechanics 1993; 12: 277–296) mesh objective 2D and 3D finite element formulations are developed using linear and quadratic 2D elements as well as 8‐noded 3D elements. In the formulation of the finite‐element model proposed in the paper, the analogy with standard formulations is emphasized. The parameter defining the amplitude of the displacement jump within the finite element is condensed out at the material level without employing the standard static condensation technique. This approach results in linearized constitutive equations formally identical to continuum models. Therefore, the standard return mapping algorithm is used to solve the non‐linear equations. In analogy to concepts used in continuum smeared crack models, a rotating formulation of the SDA is proposed in addition to the standard concept of fixed discontinuities. It is shown that the rotating localization approach reduces locking effects observed in analyses based on fixed localization directions. The applicability of the proposed SDA finite‐element model as well as its numerical performance is investigated by means of a three‐dimensional ultimate load analysis of a steel anchor embedded in a concrete block subjected to a shear force. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the C1 continuous discretization of non‐linear gradient elasticity: A comparison of NEM and FEM based on Bernstein–Bézier patches

In gradient elasticity, the appearance of strain gradients in the free energy density leads to the need of C¹ continuous discretization methods. In the present work, the performances of C¹ finite elements and the C¹ Natural Element Method (NEM) are compared. The triangular Argyris and Hsieh–Clough–Tocher finite elements are reparametrized in terms of the Bernstein polynomials. The quadrilateral Bogner–Fox–Schmidt element is used in an isoparametric framework, for which a preprocessing algorithm is presented. Additionally, the C¹‐NEM is applied to non‐linear gradient elasticity. Several numerical examples are analyzed to compare the convergence behavior of the different methods. It will be illustrated that the isoparametric elements and the NEM show a significantly better performance than the triangular elements. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.